Far Cry 4 - PS4 Review

Far Cry 4 qualifies as a sequel, despite the fact it draws so much inspiration directly from the last game in the series. An open world with a ton of quests? Over-the-top psychotic villain? A leveling system to compliment first-person action and stealth? A trio of 'checks' there. Far Cry 3 was a great game and it definitely serves as an outstanding building block. It would have been nice to see Far Cry 4 take a few more chances along the way, but the end product delivers.

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More screens and the opening video for Hyperdevotion Noire

The closer we come to seeing this game come out, the more excited I am for the mix of strategy and RPG elements. Here are some fresh assets for the upcoming title.

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Sony PlayStation TV - Hardware Review

I'll be honest that I was rather jealous when the Vita TV was being released in Japan with no plans for the rest of the globe. Considering that the cable that allowed the PSP video output wasn't part of the Vita's design, to finally be able to play Vita games on the TV was going to be awesome. But it is a portable system. Why hook it up to the TV? Because even my portable gaming is mostly done at home, and there's more of an enjoyment to sit back than hunch over for that many hours. Fast forward a year and it was released to the rest of the globe! Just under a different name.

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Persona 4 Arena Ultimax - Xbox 360 Review

I enjoyed Persona 4 Golden when I had a chance to play it on the Vita, and that was my entry point into the world of Persona. I know Nick has played several other games in the series, dating back to the PlayStation original years ago, but for me this was the entry point. I have to admit that when Persona 4 Arena came out, I was highly skeptical of taking a popular RPG franchise and trying to make it into a fighting game. Needless to say, I was convinced in short order that the strange combination would be a hit. Apparently it was popular enough, because Persona 4 Arena Ultimax has since come out, and it is even better than the last offering.

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Decay - The Mare announced by Daedalic Entertainment

Usually when I think of Daedalic Entertainment, my mind wanders to brightly colored visuals and adventure games. While Decay - The Mare certainly is an adventure title, this horror-themed game feels like a far  cry from what we usually see out of the team.

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Fritz Chess 14: Deep Fritz 14 DLC - PC Review

Fritz Chess 14 is a title I have spent a great deal of time with over the last several months. I had a chance to review it when it first came out, and I found it to be a game that offered an incredibly deep, intelligent collection of chess strategies that serves not only as a challenge, but as a teacher.

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Assassin's Creed Unity - Xbox One Review

Assassin's Creed: Unity is Ubisoft's first foray into next generation-only territory with the Assassin's Creed franchise and while it has been met with plenty of criticism, their push into next-gen territory is not a wholly unpleasant experience. Following the steps of Arno during the French Revolution, you will take on your old nemesis the Knights Templar through a memory-diving device called Animus created by Abstergo Industries. As you go "back in time," you will be tasked with preventing (or accomplishing) the bad guys from doing bad things, which is pretty typical. For those new to the series, which would be no small feat, you will be free-running through a densely populated Versailles and Paris, brushing up against dozens upon dozens of people as you work to chase down targets or escape the ever-present and extremely vigilant guardsmen. Putting aside the initials troubles that Unity had which were largely addressed by a nearly-1GB patch.

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A release date and compatability announcement for Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth2

Well, this title has been one we have followed for some time. And wouldn't you know it? It is going to release right around the corner from now.

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Super Smash Bros. for Wii U - Wii U Review

The Wii U got off to a rough start when it released, with a good number of people passing it over in favor of waiting for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One releases. A strange thing has happened since the release of Mario Kart 8 earlier this year, however. The Wii U seems to have found its stride. While both the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One has had some exclusives, the Wii U has managed to differentiate itself from those two consoles because of games like Super Smash Bros., which cannot be found on other platforms. Super Smash Bros. offers a robust roster, tons of features and modes and plenty of reason to pick it up and battle it out online or with friends and family in the living room.

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2014 Holiday Gaming Must-Haves - Gaming Thoughts

Over the last few months I have been wanting to put together a holiday have-to-have guide for gamers that would cover various items and games that we have covered (or, maybe we had been interested in). This is more of a list of things that I, as a gamer, would want to see in every gamer's hands or on their desks. It is less of a "Best of 2014" article and more of a "you should certainly pick this up this holiday season" article. While some of the things here may come up in a top ten list or something of the like, there is no rhyme or reason to this article other than my personal thoughts on some of this years best, or underrated, games, peripherals, or consoles. Without further ado, here are my list of things that gamers all over should look into picking up. I will apologize up front for the sheer number of links that I will be assaulting your eyeballs with, but if you know what is good for you, you will visit (and try) each and every one of them.

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New character screens for Hyperdevotion Noire

I am so looking forward to this strategy/RPG hybrid (plus Noire is my favorite Hyper character). We have some more screens and information about the upcoming game!

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Akiba's Trip: Undead and Undressed - PS4 Review

Akiba's Trip: Undead and Undressed feels like it tries to take a few chances - I just wish they had taken even more. The idea that you are stripping enemies so they can be exposed to sunlight (think of them as scientifically engineered vampires) and thereby destroyed is certainly going to be off-putting for some people (though in fairness this combat tactic is used on men and women alike). Most of the characters fall neatly into clichéd stereotypes (though some are more charming than others). There is a real effort to make the city feel like a digitized version of Akihabara, with plenty of neon signs, shop and busy streets. Akiba's trip does lots of things decently, but few of them amazingly well in the end.

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Distant Star: Revenant Fleet - PC Preview

I first caught wind of Distant Star: Revenant Fleet back in September when some teasing images were released along with a basic synopsis of what the development studio, Blazing Griffin, was trying to do with it. Given that it is a space-based game, I immediately wanted to get my hands on it, on account of my (un)healthy obsession with all things space and see if it could turn around my intense and well-founded dislike of all things rogue-like. My recent review of Dungeon of the Endless, a well-made game, explained that there was just too much going on and that the way that the game felt overall, simply turned me off of the genre. Lo-and-behold a small development studio is looking to change my opinion of the genre by placing a rogue-like in the one environment that I cannot get enough of: space.

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